


The Fallen Bird

by Sabsel98



Series: Catch me-verse [5]
Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Brain Damage, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Injury Recovery, M/M, Some angst, and fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-23
Updated: 2021-01-25
Packaged: 2021-03-15 10:49:09
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,716
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28937286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sabsel98/pseuds/Sabsel98
Summary: His wings forsook him and he fell.Now Tim struggles to fly again.
Relationships: Roy Harper/Jason Todd, Stephanie Brown/Dick Grayson, Tim Drake/Damian Wayne
Series: Catch me-verse [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2091738
Comments: 4
Kudos: 56





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So, final instalment of the series, although I will be uploading a Timeline of events, just for anyone who's interested in that, but story-wise, this is the last one.  
> Tbh, the only reason this is a two-shot is because I want to fuck with you guys. :)  
> Enjoy!

Tim was floating in the dark. Sometimes there would be flashes of color, or the sensation of someone running their fingers through his hair, or holding his hand. There were voices, too, distant and muted, their words indistinguishable.

He didn't know how long he floated, but with time, the bursts of color formed themselves into blurry shapes and he could actually squeeze the hand that was holding his, back. The voices became more distinct, too, and Tim could snatch single words out of the jumbled stream of noise.

He started to recognize most of the voices.

Bruce and Dick, Jason and Roy and the high-pitched babble, that could only belong to Lian, Kon and Cassie, were there sometimes and Bart was just a continuous buzz of sound when he came by.

There were two voices that his sluggish mind couldn't identify, however. One was female, but scratchy and raspy in a way that made Tim swallow instinctively, and the other was just a soft whisper, barely audible over the quiet in his head.

There was a blurry shape in front of his eyes, now. He vaguely recognized it as a hand, that was being waved back and forth. He tried following the movement with his eyes and was surprised that he could actually feel his body, that he wasn't floating anymore, and wondered when that had happened.

There was a joyful noise above him as he slowly tracked the movement and somebody gave his left hand a squeeze. He wanted to squeeze back, but for some reason, the left hand didn't always obey in the way he wanted it to.

There were words flooding his ears and he tried to make sense of them.

“-Drake,---hear---?---blink--- yes.”

_Blink... if you... can hear me?_

He slowly closed his eyes and then peeled them back open. It took a truly ridiculous amount of effort and Tim wondered if he should take a nap to replenish some of his energy.

Then the voice came again, it wasn't one he recognized, so maybe a doctor? He was in hospital, wasn't he?

“---Open---close---your hands----?”

_My hands?... open and close them...maybe?_

Tim would've frowned if he were able to. That seemed impossible. His muscles felt like they had been frozen and were just thawing out, it had already been so hard to just blink on command and now he had to move all ten of his fingers?

He tried, he really did, but the left one didn't do anything at all, and the fingers of his right hand only curled halfway, before it became too hard for him to concentrate.

A groan sprang from his throat and he could feel his eyes falling shut as his mind slipped into darkness, although this was a different kind than the floaty one. He'd been falling in and out of this kind of darkness for some time now. Tim thought it might be sleep, but he wasn't entirely sure.

The next time he awoke, there was a familiar voice talking to him.

“---'ve been---around---kicking ass---”, Dick's voice was a low rumble in his head, not as low as Jason or Bruce, but still easily recognizable.

“---true---make---team---”

Tim startled slightly at the second one, it was the girl with the scratchy voice.

_Are...? Are they... talking about patrol?... They're a team?...But...is...is that Steph?_

Now that he thought about it, it made sense, he hadn't heard Steph all this time and the scratchy voice had been around a lot. And, now that he was listening for it, he could definitely recognize her voice underneath the rasp.

_What... happened to...her?_

A confused noise made it's way out of his throat and a blurry shape appeared above him. He identified it as Dick, due to the blob of black on top of it's head.

“---okay--- Timmy?---hurt?---blink, yes---two---no.”

_I'm not hurt...just...confused...blinking...let's see..._

He blinked twice, to answer whether he was hurt or not, and was surprised at how easy it went. No terrible exhaustion like last time.

There was an excited noise from his right and a small soft hand squeezed his. He squeezed back, feeling relief that it wasn't as tiring as before. It was still difficult, but not to a mind-numbing degree.

“You're---hospital, Tim---been---coma.”

_A...coma?...I was....how?_

It was like someone had doused him in ice-water as the memories came rushing back. He had fallen. He had been thrown off a building by Bluebeard and- _Damian!_

He was safe, wasn't he? They rescued him, they _must_ have!

His already blurry vision got even blurrier and he felt wetness trickle down his temples and into his hair.

A large, warm hand cupped his face and wiped away the tears. Dick's voice a low, soothing rumble. But Tim's head was too swarmed by emotion to decipher what he was saying.

His sobs soon faded and a wave of exhaustion crashed into him, and swept him away without warning.

He resurfaced from the darkness several times, often only for short bursts, but sometimes long enough for him to answer simple yes or no questions or squeeze a hand upon request.

He awoke to a little girl's happy babble and felt a small, warm presence sitting next to his hip on the bed.

Her words were too fast for him to understand, but he still let her voice chase away the last cobwebs sticking to his mind.

Jason's low drawl interrupted the girl's chatter and Tim could comprehend most of what he said.

“---,kiddo,---going---cafeteria---get some snacks----stay with, Timbo?”

“Yup!”

Tim followed the movement of Jason's arm as he reached out to ruffle Lian's hair. The shapes were somewhat clearer than before and he could make out some of the child's features, her face no longer just a pink smudge.

He heard the door open and close and felt Lian starting to play with his fingers.

He wiggled them slowly and heard the little girl let out a delighted squeal. She started a game of catch with him, where he would rest his hand, palm up and open, she would lay her hand in his and he would try to catch her by closing his fingers. She was far quicker than him and yanked her hand back before he could snatch her, but he was slowly getting faster.

Her hand was actually getting less and less blurry and he could feel himself smiling with each giggle and squeal she let out.

“What are you doing, sweetcheeks?”, Jason asked upon entering the room.

Tim was momentarily stunned, he had understood every single word of that and... and he could see.

He could see everything in detail, it was like he was suddenly looking around in high definition. Had his eyesight always been that good?

“We're playing a game!”,Lian exclaimed and then let out a squawk when he actually managed to catch her, “You caught me!”

Her green eyes met his, sparkling with childish delight.

“Li....aaan...”, his tongue felt thick in his mouth and his lips protested heavily when he tried to move them, but he still managed to get her name out.

“Timmy?!”, she squeaked, her mouth dropping open.

“Holy shit! Tim? Are you awake?”

Jason was leaning over the bed, now, his eyes wide in disbelief.

Tim tried to form words, but all that came out was garbled nonsense.

He closed his mouth, swallowed and tried again.

“...dshaaayyy...”; he managed to slur.

“Fuck, Tim...”, his big brother croaked, tears rising in his eyes.

He scrambled for the nurse-call button and then pulled Tim up into a hug, careful not to dislodge the IV he was attached to. Lian joined the hug as well, clinging to his side.

“We were afraid you'd never come back...”, Jason choked.

Tim really wanted to hug the both of them back, but he only barely managed to lift his right arm before it flopped uselessly to his side again.

After that there was a whirlwind of hospital personnel that put him through all kinds of tests.

Tim was beyond tired by the end of it, which was kind of funny considering how long he had been asleep. Although he hadn't really gotten an answer to that question yet.

He dreaded it a bit, after all Lian had looked older than the last time he had seen her, which to him had only been a few days ago, but had to have been at least six months, if not longer.

Tim could hear exited voices as he was being wheeled back to his room.

The nurse chuckled.

“Sounds like the entire family is here. I hope you're ready, Mister Drake.”, he said, before opening the door.

Tim braced himself for the cacophony of noise that he expected to erupt, instead there was abrupt silence and he could feel everybody staring at him as the nurse put him back into his bed and hooked him back up to the IV, while making sure his catheter was still in place.

“Tim.”

The boy looked up at Bruce who had sat down on the edge of his bed and taken his hand. Tim smiled and gave his hand a squeeze.

His adoptive father hugged him tightly, pressing a kiss into his hair.

“I'm glad you're back.”

Dick was next, flinging his arms around him and pressing their cheeks together. Tim had to laugh at his brother's antics and could feel him grinning widely.

“Don't ever do this again, you hear me!”, Steph cried out, almost choking him with the strength of her hug.

“Don't send him into another coma, Steph.”, Jason laughed and she quickly let go.

He blinked at her, perplexed.

_What?... What happened to her?_

She must've read his question in his eyes because she chuckled and put her hands on her hips.

“Oh, this? Yeah, my Stalker set me on fire. Don't worry he's in jail, now, and I'm fine. Still bringing the heat.”

There was a chorus of groans and Tim stared at her.

_Did she just...?_

“All right that's it. No more fire puns, Steph.”

“But Jaayyy!”

“Nope, they were funny for the first few months, but they're just annoying, now.”

Tim smiled as the two started to bicker.

“Timothy...”

The boy turned his head slightly at the voice, it was the soft one, the one he had heard the most, but had been unable to place.

Tim's eyes went wide and his heart jumped into his throat.

It was Damian.

_He's alive... oh, thank god....why-....why is he so quiet, though?..._

“You came back...”, he said softly, blinking tears from his eyes.

Tim was taken aback for a moment.

Damian's voice was different, not only because of the volume he spoke at, but it was lower with a melodious quality to it that it definitely hadn't had before.

Tim studied his boyfriend's face closely.

He had noticed small changes in the other's. Steph was taller and her hair was shorter, Bruce had more crow's feet around his eyes, and Jason had somehow put on more bulk. There was also Lian, who had shot up like a weed, but Tim had initially dismissed that, seeing as small children tended to grow in bursts.

But.

But Damian. Damian was taller, still smaller than Tim, but definitely taller. His face was leaner, the cheekbones even more prominent and his jaw sharper. He looked older, and more than just a few months older.

_How long was I out?_

“Can I hug you?”

The question startled him out of his thoughts. Damian's eyes held something sad in them and, to his alarm, something almost... afraid?

Why would Damian be afraid to hug him? That said, why would he even ask? The other's hadn't.

Pushing those questions away for the moment Tim gave a slow nod.

The younger boy smiled and gently embraced him.

Tim felt something inside him unwind as he let his head rest against the younger one's shoulder. Closing his eyes he inhaled Damian's warm scent, allowing himself to rest for a few heartbeats.

Damian pulled back, but remained seated on the edge of his bed, holding his good hand and intertwining their fingers.

“I wanna hug, too!”, Lian demanded, hopping up onto the bed and hugging Tim, who let out a chuckle.

“Can I hug you too, Dami?”, she asked and the teenager smiled and nodded, letting the little girl climb into his lap.

Or, well, the not-as-little-as-she-had-been girl.

Which brought Tim back to his earlier confusion.

“How long was I asleep?”, was what he meant to ask.

What came out of his mouth was:

“H-h-haahw-w-w l-l-loooshleeeap?”

He felt his cheeks flush in mortification as everyone stared at him.

“You, uh, you wanna to try that again, Timster?”, Jason asked.

Tim pursed his lips, his tongue was lolling about in his mouth, not wanting to form the words.

“Haaah-haw-lala?”

Lian giggled, then slapped a hand over her mouth.

“Sorry!”

Tim ignored her, too focused on trying to get his words out.

“L-l-l-looong?....l-l-looonh ashle-le-leeep?”, he finally slurred, praying that it was enough for his family to understand.

“How long you were out?”, Dick asked and Tim nodded eagerly.

There was a long pause and he felt his heart drop into his stomach.

Bruce stepped up to him and took his other hand.

“You were in a coma for two months, you were in a Vegetative State for ten and have been in a Minimally Conscious State for the past three months. Until today.”

Tim's mouth dropped open. Fifteen months. He had been gone for _fifteen months!_

Dizziness swept through him and his vision went blurry, for a moment he panicked, thinking that he had maybe gone back under, until he felt wetness roll down his cheeks.

_I-I missed both my birthdays... holy shit. I'm eighteen... and... and I don't even..._

His train of thought suddenly derailed and got lost in the tumble of emotions that swept through his head. He had missed over a year! And he could barely move and sounded like an idiot when he tried to talk!

A sob tore from his throat and Bruce tucked him into his side, running a hand through his slightly-too-long hair. Damian ran his thumb over his knuckles and Tim held onto him for dear life. Crying out his confusion and shock into Bruce's chest.

…

…

…

Physio-therapy was hell.

Tim's muscle's felt like jello most of the time and something as simple as lifting his arms above his head became a herculean task, especially since his left arm was either completely unresponsive, or started jerking in spastic movements at the most random times. He'd accidentally hit his therapist _twice_ because of the damn thing. He almost wished they'd just cut it off, then he could've gotten a cool prosthetic like Roy and wouldn't have to deal with a hand that was sometimes possessed by a demon.

They weren't going to let him walk, since he couldn't support himself with his arms, yet. But they did do some physical exercises to help rebuild the muscles in his legs, so he would be able to carry his weight when the time came.

Again, it was the left side that gave him trouble. His left leg responded, when he tried to move it, but would just randomly go limp. He was almost glad that he wouldn't be expected to walk, lest he crack his skull again from crashing to the ground.

There were also some flexibility exercises for his hip. He had to rotate his legs in their sockets, pull them up and sway them from side to side, or keep one up, while he spread the other to the side.

Tim felt like an old man, because he could barely do any of them. His hips were stiff and started to ache even faster than the muscles in his arms and legs and he had to stop the exercise more often than not.

There was also speech therapy he had to go to, since he sounded like a drunk person most of the time.

He was really glad that none of his family and friends teased him for it. He was incredibly self-conscious about the way he sounded and tried to stay quiet during most conversation, if he could follow them at all.

That was something that downright scared Tim. He sometimes just... drifted of, his thoughts floating to some other topic that had nothing to do with what was happening in front of him. Sometimes he even forgot what they had been talking about and the person he was speaking to would have to repeat what they'd said. It even happened when he himself was speaking. The first time it had happened had been only two days after he woke up, and it had confused the hell out of Steph and him.

“So, I come home and there's smoke everywhere, scared the ever loving fuck out of me. And Dick, shouts that everything's okay, he just burned dinner. I told him to never touch the stove again. Seriously, I love the man, but he can't cook for shit.”, Steph said, sitting cross-legged at the end of his bed.

“W-w-w-what... washe... t-t-tryinh... to-to m-m-made ?”, he asked, curious.

“Well, you see, he had the bright idea to-”

Tim stared. Steph's hair was so short now. It had been that short when she had just started out as Spoiler. It only reached her chin, the bouncy curls forming a wild mane around her head. She kind of looked like a lion.

“L-l-l-lioneshhh...”, he corrected his thoughts, but then frowned, “w-w-wait... lineshhh...no-no m-m-mane...”

“Uh... what?”

Tim jerked. He had completely forgotten that Steph was telling a story.

_What was she saying?...I can't... I can't remember..._

The blonde girl was eyeing him dubiously.

“Were you listening?”

He squirmed, which was almost an accomplishment, at this point.

“Y-yesh... b-b-but got... dish-dish-dishtraket b-by...”, he frowned.

What _had_ he gotten distracted by?

Steph tilted her head.

“Distracted by what?”

He closed his eyes, feeling a peculiar mix of frustration and shame.

“A dunno...”

A hand took his and gently squeezed his fingers.

“Timmy, are you okay?”

He slowly shook his head.

“N-No.... forgot-got-got...”

There was a surprised noise from his friend.

“You forgot what distracted you?”

He scrunched up his nose.

“ a-an'... w-w-w-what you's... tellinh...”

“Oh, wow... okay... Uhh, I didn't think it was _that_ boring.”

He opened his eyes and chuckled.

“S'not....ahm jusht.... sc-sc-scattetetered...”

Steph sighed, it was a sad noise.

“We gotta tell the docs about this. Can't have you forget your own name, now, can we?”

He smiled at her.

“N-na-na-name's T-T-Tim...”

“As long as you don't forget that, all's good.”

…

…

…

“Hey, Tim. Did you have lunch, yet?”, Roy asked upon entering the room, Lian bouncing onto the bed immediately.

Tim nodded. Questions like that were asked pretty often, now. It was supposed to help him with his memory, since he sometimes forgot things without noticing. So his family would ask questions about his day, or they would mention a specific day, or event, in a story and then ask him later if he remembered. Sometimes he did, sometimes he didn't, it was incredibly frustrating.

There were also times where he remembered, but couldn't find the right words, like now.

“Yesh... I h-had.... uh...”

He frowned, trying to recall the name of the food he'd had.

“You don't remember?”, the archer asked, sitting down in the chair next to his bed.

“I-I do.... bu-but... words.”, he frowned, different words were rattling around in his brain making it hard to chose the right ones.

Roy leaned back in his chair, somehow projecting calm without doing anything.

“That's okay. Take your time.”

Tim sighed, trying to concentrate. It was a simple word too, but it kept slipping away.

“Um... uh... s-slurpy f-f-food.... I ate-te.”

The teen flushed. He was pretty sure he had garbled that sentence. Also slurpy-food was definitely not the right word.

“Do... do you mean soup?”

Tim buried his face in his hands, glad that the left one actually obeyed. _Soup_ the word was _soup,_ God he was such an idiot.

Lian actually burst into giggles.

“Slurpy-food! I'll never say soup again, that is way better!”

Roy snorted.

“Thanks for teaching my daughter weird words, Timmers.”

The boy lowered his hands and shrugged, cheeks still pink.

“A-At l-le-least.... Ahm n-n-not... swearinh.”

The redhead gave a nonchalant shrug at that.

“I don't give a shit about that. She's around a lot of teenagers and adults, she's gonna hear some swearwords anyway. What's supposed to happen if she hears somebody say fuck? It's not like it will damage her.”

Tim blinked, taken aback.

“She... kn-kn-know meaning... f-f-fuck?”

“I know what sex is! Fuck is just a rough way of saying it.”

Lian had cuddled into his side and was looking rather smug. Tim snorted and ran his good hand through her hair.

“S-s-smart one...”

“Of course she is. She's _my_ daughter, after all.”

Tim made a vague sound.

“N-n-not th-tha-that... s-s-smart.”

Roy raised an eyebrow at him.

“You callin' me stupid, Mister Slurpy-food?”

Tim ducked his head. He had walked right into that one.

…

…

…

He suddenly had a lot of respect for toddlers. Learning how to walk was a nightmare.

Tim was sweating bullets as he tried to set one foot in front of the other. There were railings on either side of him, which he was holding onto. His arms shook with effort as he held himself up and his legs felt like they were going to snap under his weight. 

Then his left leg, the weak one, decided it had had enough and just gave out. Tim managed to keep himself up with his arms, but the left one, he was secretly calling it the demon hand, just let go of the railing without his permission. He flopped to the ground, right hand still clinging to the railing, and was very glad that the floor was padded.

Tim rested his head on the floor for a moment, panting. He warily eyed the demon hand as it flopped around like a dying fish.

He wouldn't be surprised if the thing tried to strangle him one day.

They called it quits after that and one of the nurses took him back to his room, where she helped him shower and dress himself, something that was still humiliating to him.

He even had to call a nurse when he needed the toilet, but at least he wasn't forced to use the catheter anymore. Whoever had invented those things deserved a punch in the face.

Tim was hoping that he'd be able to walk soon. Because once he was deemed stable enough on his feet, he would be able to go home. He'd still have to do exercises and see a speech-therapist, but he wouldn't have to stay at the hospital anymore.

Not that the people here weren't nice, but he really missed the manor. He wanted to go home and feel a little bit more normal.

…

…

…

Damian slowly approached the bed and sat himself down in the chair that was always beside it, although most of the people that came by just sat on the bed with him.

“H-Hi.”

“Hello.”

There was silence. That's how it went most of the time when Damian came to visit, since Tim avoided talking for long periods of time and Damian was just a lot quieter than he used to be.

The silence wasn't a comfortable one, either, it was awkward. Which summed up things between him and Damian nicely. It was just painfully awkward and Tim didn't know how to fix it. 

_Maybe Damian... isn't interested anymore?_

The thought made his heart plummet. They had only been together for roughly a week and then Tim had been gone for over a year. It wouldn't surprise him if Damian had moved on. Maybe even found someone else and didn't know how to tell him?

Tim swallowed, hard. His stomach felt like it was tying itself into knots at the thought. Should he ask? Get the heartbreak over with. Maybe if he did it quickly it would hurt less? Like ripping off a band-aid.

Now, Tim only had to find the right words, get them in the right order and say them in a recognizable way. Easy, right? Especially with the storm of emotions that was sweeping through his mind. His stammering and grammar always got worse when he was emotional.

_Damian, we can end our relationship, if you want to be with someone else... That sounds... good?_

He took a deep breath and began.

“D-Damii...re-re-relashionshi-ship...e-en-end... you w-with....some-someone... el-el-else.”

Tim frowned, that had not come out how he wanted it to, he hoped it would still get the point across.

He also hoped that Damian would just laugh and call him silly for worrying.

Tim glanced at the younger boy cautiously.

All the color had drained from his face and Tim felt a sharp stab of pain in his heart.

_Oh, god there's someone else. I was wrong, this does not hurt less._

“I'm sorry.”, Damian voice was thin and brittle, “I-I didn't mean to cheat...”

Tim felt tears rise in his eyes. Damian had already...? Of course, they probably thought he wasn't gonna wake up and Damian could hardly break up with an unconscious person. He probably hadn't wanted to ruin Tim's progress by immediately dumping him, either, which is probably the reason things were so awkward between them. Damian already had another relationship, but still wanted to support Tim in his journey. He was sweet like that.

The older teen tried to pull the mess in his head into some coherent order.

“...w-w-was...a-a-ashl-le-ep...”, he had meant to sound reassuring, but his voice had broken on a sob, halfway-through.

_I was asleep, it's okay._

Damian made a strangled noise and Tim caught a glimpse of his tear-stained face, before he bolted for the door.

Tim buried his face in his knees as best as he could, the demon hand was going absolutely crazy next to him, but he ignored it in favor of crying his eyes out. He felt like someone had torn his heart out and it was now bleeding on the floor.

He wanted the awkward silence back.


	2. Chapter 2

Tim was still curled up by the time Dick came into his room.

He lifted his head and blinked his puffy eyes at his big brother.

“Hey, Tim... Were you crying? What's wrong?”

The eldest sat down on the bed and took the demon hand, which gave a little twitch in response.

Tim sniffled and wiped at his eyes, his head ached.

“D-D-Dam-mi....”

Dick's eyebrows hit his hairline in surprise.

“Damian? Did... Did you guys have a fight?”

The teen almost wanted to laugh. If only it had been just a fight.

He blinked, hard. He was not going to cry again, he was _not._

“B-b-brok-ken....”

“Broken? What is-”, Dick's eyes went wide as realization hit him, “You guys _broke up?”_

Tim gave a miserable nod.

“What the fuck? _Why?!_ ”

“C-cause.... c-c-cause Da-Dami's... l-l-love... some-some-o-one el-else...”

He scrunched up his face. Saying it out loud hurt even worse.

To his surprise, there was a flash of absolute _rage_ on his brother's face.

“Who told you that?”, he snarled and- _Woah, that's Dick's Batman voice._

“Wh-what?”

“Who, _the fuck,_ told you that bullshit?! I swear, if somebody is trying to sabotage your relationship-!”

Dick had actually stood up, an angry scowl on his face.

“D-Damian...”

That seemed to take the wind out of the young man's sails, he stared at Tim like he had grown a second head.

“What?”

_There are a lot of what's in this conversation... What is such a weird word... Who even came up with that?..._

“Tim! Focus!”, Dick snapped his fingers in front of his face, which _rude._

He blinked at his older brother. Right they were talking about... about the break-up.

The demon hand started jerking, open and closing and jumping up and down. Tim gripped it at the wrist, trying to keep it still.

“What do you mean, Damian told you he was in love with someone else? Damian spent almost every day at your bed-side. There's no way he fell for someone else.”

Tim swallowed, still wrestling with the demon hand.

“He-he... apo-apo-apoloshaizzzed... f-f-for.... f-f-for che-chea-cheating....”

Dick's face went completely blank, it was kind of eerie, he then let himself fall into the chair and put his head in his hands.

“He thinks that- Oh god, _Dami._ ”, his older brother choked out.

Tim felt slightly dizzy with all the emotions that were cursing through him. There was sadness, hurt and a massive amount of confusion.

He felt like he had missed something and wondered for a moment if he had zoned out again.

“D-D-Dick... whazz go-going... on?”

His brother raised his head, looking uncomfortable and sad.

“Damian didn't tell you...”

Tim frowned, relieved as the demon hand stopped it's antics, and felt a cold stone of dread form in his stomach. Something was wrong here. Tim was missing a huge chunk of information and, from the looks of it, an incredibly important one.

“T-t-tell m-me...wh-what?”

Dick carded a hand through his hair.

“Shit. It's not my place to tell... but getting Damian to talk to you is going to be a nightmare. _Ugh,_ you guys are such idiots...”

Tim pursed his lips, his thoughts were going a mile a minute and something was tugging at his brain. He squinted, trying to figure out what was going on.

There was obviously some kind of misunderstanding here, but Tim didn't quite get what it could be. Damian had _told_ him that there was another person-

No, _Tim_ had said that, and now that he went over the sentence he had said again, it sounded like _he_ was breaking up with Damian because there was someone else Damian was interested in.

_But... why did Damian apologize for cheating... if there was no-one?_

Tim glanced at his brother, who was frowning at his phone, texting either, Damian directly, or calling Steph in to help with the issue.

_Dick said that Damian_ thinks  _that he cheated... but that doesn't make sense. How could somebody mistakenly believe that they cheat-_

The teen sat up ramrod straight, every muscle in his body tensed as pure _horror_ tore through him.

_He wasn't rescued immediately after being taken by Bluebeard... Oh, god...Damian..._

“Tim? What's happening? Are you okay?”, his brother asked, worried.

He stared at Dick, wide eyed.

“H-How... l-l-long?”

Dick frowned, confused.

“What?”

“How -l-l-long... B-Blueb-b-beard?”

He watched as his brother's jaw dropped.

“You're missing half your brain and are still a goddamn detective. How the hell?”

“ _Dick!_ ”, he barked, “How _long..._ w-was Damian... w-w-with Blue-be-beard?!”

The man sagged into himself.

“The entire week. He escaped himself.”

Tim flopped back into the pillows, suddenly boneless. Terror was making his limbs feel cold, while sadness and anger were swimming around in his head. His eyes focused on his eldest brother and an emotion he hadn't expected to feel rushed through him. Disappointment.

Because Damian was not only Dick's youngest brother, but he was also his Robin.

_You didn't save him._

Dick, oblivious to his disillusionment, looked up at him after his phone had pinged.

“So, I was texting Damian. He's pretty upset, right now, and wants to gather himself before talking again. He's asking if it's okay if he and Steph come by on Tuesday?”

Tim nodded, relieved that Damian still wanted to see him.

His brother gave him a smile.

“Alright, then. Don't worry, you guys will fix this.”

He hoped Dick was right.

…

…

…

They met outside, in the small garden that was part of the hospital-complex. Tim was walking slowly, leaning heavily onto a pair of crutches. He had a pretty heavy limp, due to his stiff hips and weak left leg. It would get better over time, but never fully go away.

He saw Steph and Damian sitting on a bench under an oak tree, whose leaves had all fallen, littering the ground around the bench. It provided an uneven crunching sound as he made his way towards them.

“Well, look who's up and walking around!”, Steph said, hopping to her feet.

He gave her a small smile.

“...'s more a... h-ho-hobble... t-t-than a w-w-walk...”, Tim said, letting himself sink onto the bench carefully.

He caught his breath for a moment, glancing at Damian who sat at the other end of the bench. There was a large gap between them.

“Well, still. It's way better than being in a wheelchair all the time. You're recovering fast, too. I'm pretty sure it usually takes longer to get to this point.”

Tim sighed.

“I... w-w-wish mah.... sp-sp-shpeech... w-w-would be... a-as go-go-goood....the-the-the-”, he stopped, his tongue having tied itself into knots.

He took a shaky breath, before continuing.

“Th-then... w-w-we wo-wou-would... n-n-not be-be... i-in th-thi-this... m-ma-mess.”

Damian had hunched in on himself. He wasn't looking at Tim, watching the autumn breeze sweep a few of the leaves away, instead.

“You're not to blame... I-I cheated on you-”

“No, Sweetie, we spoke about this. That is not cheating-”

The youngest's head whipped around and he glared at Steph, and for a moment there was some of Damian's old fire in those sad eyes of his.

“That is not for you to decide.”

Tim's eyebrows drew together in a frown.

“Y-you... ha-haf... m-m-me... no-not...ch-ch... dsheated.”

He squinted. _Wow, I really bungled that one... not as bad as the one that caused this, but still._

“See, Tim agrees... You didn't want to have sex with him. It's not cheating if it's involuntary.”

Damian lowered his gaze and hugged himself.

“I came, though... s-sometimes I-”, his voice was barely above a whisper and he turned his head completely away from them.

Tim felt like someone had punched him in the gut. He wanted to reach out to Damian, but knew that his touch was probably the last thing he needed, right now.

“N-Not mu-ma-make... want... i-it... rah-re-reacshion... o-of b-body.”

Steph stepped a bit closer to Damian, who was still not looking at them.

“I think, what Tim is trying to say, is that, just because your body reacted, doesn't mean that you wanted it, or liked what was happening.”

“Yesh... tha-that!”

The sixteen-year old peered at them, a strange mix of confusion and hope on his face.

“Isn't, uhm... isn't that the... the goal when you have sex, though?”

Tim blinked, stunned. He was suddenly struck with how _innocent_ Damian was. Him and Tim hadn't really done anything more than kissing in the short week they'd had together. Which meant that the only sexual experiences Damian has had were with his rapist.

The older boy had to swallow down the bile that had risen in his throat at that thought.

“Oh, Dami, no. Sex is so much more than that. It's not just about reaching the climax, it's- it's about having a connection with somebody else, about the intimacy, especially when you're in a relationship. I mean, you can still have wonderful sex even if you don't have an orgasm. Hell, I don't always come when I sleep with Dick, and he doesn't either, but it's still some of the best sex I've ever had, just because I love him and enjoy being with him.”

Tim felt his cheeks flush. Steph was right of course, but that had been a bit much at the end there.

And if Damian's red ears were anything to go by, he thought so too.

“Oh.... I-I did not know that.”, he said, awkwardly.

Tim bit his lip, getting his thoughts in order.

“Shteff's.. ru-right... an'... r-rape ish-is... no-not s-sex.... it's-.... uh....tur-tor-tortal-”

“Torture?”, Damian supplied, having turned towards them again, his voice was distant and there was something haunted in his eyes, “Yes... yes it is.”

There was a beat of silence where each of them was lost in their own thoughts.

“So...”, Steph began, “Are you guys good then?”

Damian looked at him and there it was again, that little shadow of fear, that he had seen before.

“That depends on Timothy... I think.”

Tim scooted a bit closer to the other boy, taking a moment to just sink into those moss-green eyes.

It wasn't even a question whether he wanted to be with Damian, not to Tim, because.

Because Damian was everything.

“D-D-Don't... w-wa-want...to-to... l-l-loose yo-you...w-want... yo-you t-t-to... be-be... ha-hay-happy.... wan-wanna muh-ma-make.... you ha-happy... c-c-cause-”, Tim had to stop, his words were getting too jumbled in his head and this was important.

He licked his lips, trying to calm his racing heart so he could think. Damian was watching him, enraptured.

“m-m-my hu-he-heart...”, he stopped again, making sure to get every word he wanted to say out and maybe do it without stammering too much, as well, “Y-you... are... m-my...heart...”

The other boy's eyes went wide with awe.

“Hayati...”, he breathed, softly. _My life._

Tim reached out with his good hand, giving Damian time to pull away, and cupped his cheek, marveling at the softness of his skin as he ran his thumb over it.

The younger boy leaned forward until their foreheads touched, he was close enough that Tim could see the little specks of brown hidden in the green of his eyes.

They stayed like that for a moment, just basking in each other's presence.

It was Damian, that closed the gap between them, softly pressing his lips to Tim's.

Every single thought in Tim's head came to a halt, as his eyes fluttered shut, and he got lost in the kiss.

A squeal from their right, brought them back to earth.

Tim snorted at Steph, who was bouncing on the balls of her feet, her hands clasped in front of her and eyes sparkling with delight.

“You guys are so _cute!_ I'm so glad you're together again, I almost had a heart attack when Dick told me you'd broken up!”

She then hopped over and hugged the both of them. Tim chuckled and hugged her back, still holding onto his boyfriend with one hand.

“By the way, I totally filmed that and am sending it to the family chat!”

“Shteff!”, Tim squawked.

The girl just danced backwards with a giggle and nimbly dodged Damian, who had made a grab for her phone.

Tim relaxed as he watched the two of them horse around in the leaves, a smile on his face.

…

…

…

The next time his boyfriend came by, things were a lot easier. They were still mostly quiet, but it was a comfortable silence, devoid of the uncertainty and doubt it had held before.

Damian actually climbed straight into bed with him, tucking himself against his side and Tim was more than happy to wrap his arms around him and hold him close.

He pressed a kiss to the crown of the younger boy's head and started to stroke his hair, enjoying the feeling of the soft strands slipping through his fingers. Damian downright melted and made a noise that could only be described as a purr as he started to draw patterns on Tim's chest.

It was nice, peaceful.

Until the demon hand started acting up and made him accidentally tug his boyfriend's hair.

“Sh-shit... s-so-sorry... stu-stupid-”

Tim never finished his sentence, because Damian made an annoyed noise, grabbed his left hand by the wrist and pinned it down next to his head, glaring at the jerking appendage.

Tim's heart jumped into his throat.

_Well, that's hot._

The older boy's thoughts were completely scattered when Damian's eyes met his. The smaller boy was leaning over him, their faces only inches apart. His eyes roamed over Tim's face, pupils slightly dilated. The teen felt heat pool in his stomach and deliberately tilted his head back, exposing his throat.

Damian took his invitation and gently brushed his lips over his Adam's apple. Tim's breath skittered. He exhaled sharply when plush lips pressed against his pulse point and sucked at the sensitive skin.

Damian continued to scatter kisses over his throat, his tongue darting out here and there to soothe a mark he had left. Oh, and Damian was definitely leaving marks, not that Tim was complaining.

“D-Dami...”, he gasped, flushed and squirming.

The younger boy lifted his head, his cheeks were pink, eyes dark with desire, and Tim had to swallow a moan at the sight.

“K-ki-kiss me.”

Damian didn't hesitate, capturing his lips hungrily and making a soft noise at the back of his throat as Tim deepened the kiss. The younger boy pressed is tongue eagerly against his, lapping at the insides of his cheeks and running over each of his teeth.

Tim couldn't help but groan, loving the feel and taste of the other.

The need for air eventually forced them to part and Damian pulled back. His lips were kiss-swollen and red, and a thin strand of saliva connected them before it broke and dribbled onto Tim's chin.

They stared at each other for a heartbeat, panting. Then Damian shifted slightly and froze, his eyes widening.

Tim frowned slightly, confused, but then registered the line of heat that was pressing into his hip. Damian was hard. A spark traveled down his spine and ignited in his belly. His own cock twitched with want.

Damian's eyes were distant, however, and Tim felt worry douse some of the fire that was warming his blood.

He reached up and gently cupped his lover's cheek.

“C-co-come... bu-back... t-t-to me, my Heart...”

The other boy's eyes cleared and he focused back on him. Shame dimmed some of the light in them.

“I'm sorry, Hayati...”

Tim ran his thumb over his cheekbone, wanting to reassure.

“...S'okay...yo-you cu-co-comfor-fortable?”

Damian leaned into his touch and smiled softly.

“Yes... I-I'm okay...Are _you_ comfortable with what's happening? I'm still holding your hand down.”

The taller teen glanced at his left hand, which was lying still, he flexed it, feeling Damian's grip around his wrist. It wasn't too tight, but not loose either. He liked it, _a lot._

Tim nodded and, after a moment of deliberation, let his right hand rest on the other side of his head, raising an eyebrow at his boyfriend.

The younger boy stared at him, lips slightly parted, and took his offered wrist, nailing it to the bed. He then swung his leg over him, straddling him. Tim hummed, his back arching as Damian's hard cock burned his pelvis, branding him with his need. Yes, Tim was _very_ comfortable with what was happening.

His boyfriend leaned over him, ghosting his lips over Tim's forehead, his cheeks and the bridge of his nose, before brushing a kiss against the corner of his mouth. He turned his head, trying to catch his lips, but Damian had already gone out of reach.

“Te-tease...”, he accused and the smaller boy grinned, his pretty eyes sparking.

He then nuzzled against his throat, his nose skimming over some of the marks he had left earlier, making goosebumps rise on Tim's skin. The teen let out a whine, his thoughts too jumbled to form words and Damian finally kissed him, slow and deep.

The smaller boy moaned as he rolled his hips and Tim squirmed, his own member aching with need.

If Damian moved just a bit lower then they could-

“Hey, Timbo- woah there, kids, this is a hospital. Keep it pg!”

Damian squeaked and scrambled off him and Tim glared at Jason, who was standing in the doorway, grinning.

“D-d-damn... yo-you, Dshay...”, he hissed, both embarrassed and slightly pissed.

Their big brother just laughed.

…

…

…

Tim was actually scheduled to go home when he experienced a major setback. It didn't have anything to do with his weak leg or stiff hips, or the demon hand. It wasn't even about his cognitive function. What kept him in the hospital for another month was his shitty immune system.

He had a cough. Harmless, right?

That's what Tim thought, until he had gone from a bit of coughing to shaking in bed, due to fever, and feeling like his lungs had been set on fire, all in the span of a single night.

He had caught pneumonia. And a hospital strain of it, too, which meant it was resistant to most antibiotics.

For the next three weeks, Tim found himself drifting in and out of consciousness in a frighteningly similar manner to the hazy memories he had of his coma.

Each breath he took was a battle, pain lancing through him with every expansion of his chest. The noise it made could only be described as a death-rattle. It was haunting.

Tim was hooked up to oxygen at some point. He barely registered it.

His family had to wear masks and gloves, when they came to visit, and Tim was glad that they were allowed to come, at all.

It was strange to feel latex, instead of skin, whenever somebody held his hands, or brushed his sweaty hair back. Tim blearily met the worried eyes of whoever was there at the moment, trying to reassure them that he wasn't giving up without a fight.

_I got splattered on the pavement and survived, like hell am I going to let some stupid illness kill me!_

He improved gradually, his stubbornness winning out over the bacteria inflaming his lungs.

By the time he was healthy enough to go home, Christmas had already passed and the end of the year was rapidly approaching.

He was kind of bummed out, having missed Christmas like that, but at least he would be home for New Year's.

It was Alfred that drove him home from the hospital. The demon hand was jittering in excitement on his thigh and Tim took a deep breath before heaving himself out of the passenger seat.

He held onto the door for a moment, making sure his weak leg was stable, before limping away from the car and closing the door.

The teen drank in the sight of the manor, snow covered the roof and glittered on the ground. The cool winter air burned his cheeks and carried tiny snowflakes that got stuck in his hair.

Tim grinned.

He was finally home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, finally done!   
> I'd like to thank everyone who left kudos, bookmarked, or left a comment on the series.  
> This series has been rattling around in my head for quite a while, and although the original idea that I had, was slightly different, I am more than satisfied with the outcome.  
> I hope that you guys enjoyed reading as much as I enjoyed writing it.  
> Should anybody want to play in this sandbox, feel free to.  
> Thanks for reading and a good day to you all! ^^


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